Obama Considers a 'Limited, Narrow Act' Against Syria

Just after Secretary of State John Kerry laid out the administration's case against Syria, President Obama addressed reporters over the newly-released intelligence summaries seen as the justification for a possible military strike against Bashar al-Assad's government. Repeating that he has not yet made a decision on Syria, Obama described the possibility of a "limited, narrow act" against the country in response to a chemical weapons attack last week that the U.S. now believes killed over 1,400 people. Obama added, "We're not considering any open ended commitment. We're not considering any boots on the ground approach."

According to the pool report from Dallas Morning News's Todd Gillman, Obama also addressed what he termed the "war weary" attitude of many people, including himself, going into the prospect of a new military intervention. “A lot of people think something should be done," he said, "but nobody wants to do it.” He continued: "There is a certain weariness, given Afghanistan. There is a certain suspicion of any military action post-Iraq. And I very much appreciate that."

As for the justification for military action in this instance, the President said:

"It’s important for us to recognize that when over a thousand people are killed, including hundreds of innocent children, through the use of a weapon that 98 or 99 percent of humanity says should not be used even in war, and there is no action, then we’re sending a signal."